Chicken Machboos (Bahraini Spiced Chicken and Rice)

Written on 25 March, 2013

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Chicken Machboos, or Machboos ala Dajaj (“spiced chicken and rice”), is the national dish of Bahrain, a small island country in the Persian Gulf neighbored by Saudi Arabia and Iran. Machboos is similar to Biryani (from the Indian subcontinent) and Kabsa (from Saudi Arabia), all with varying cooking methods, ingredients, degree of spiciness, and assembly. But all three are essentially meat and rice dishes.

I developed this recipe by way of request from Jay and Kelly. They posted a challenge for me on The Daring Gourmet’s facebook fan page. Having toured the Middle East during their time in the Navy, they had come to love its variety of foods. They especially loved the Machboos from Bahrain. Disappointed in the recipes they’ve found and tried online, they challenged me to develop an authentic Bahraini Machboos. Jay and Kelly, while I can’t promise you that this tastes just like the particular Machboos you had in Bahrain, I can guarantee that it’s both authentic and delicious.

I even flew back to the Middle East to pick up the spices for this dish. Just kidding. But I was there a few years ago and could have spent HOURS in the spice stalls of the Arab markets. This vendor had a terrific selection.

And oh, how I miss that perfect sun-kissed skin! Mine, not the spice vendor’s. I don’t miss him – or his skin, rather. But he was a very nice man and he let me take his picture.

There are two ingredients in particular that set this dish apart from any Western chicken and rice dishes. Baharat and Loomi.

Baharat, Arabic for “spice”, is a popular spice blend found in Arab cuisine. Ingredients can vary, but it typically includes black pepper, paprika, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and nutmeg. An intensely flavorful spice blend, Baharat can liven up any dish. It is commonly used as a rub for lamb, chicken, beef and fish and can be combined with olive oil and lemon juice for a delicious marinade. It is also used in soups and sauces.

Loomi is another ingredient that is a must if you wish to achieve an authentic flavor in your Middle Eastern cooking. Loomi are limes, often from Oman, that have been boiled and then left to dry in the sun. Their color can range from tan to black. The concentrated lime flavor is intensely tangy and earthy with an almost smoky quality. Loomi are sold under a variety of names including black limes, black lemons (though not lemons at all), and of course dried limes. They can be purchased either whole or in powdered form. Whole is better as the powder oxidizes quickly and much of the flavor can be lost. As with spices, it is better to keep them stored whole and then grind as needed. Dried limes can be found in stores carrying Middle Eastern products or can be ordered online. They are also delicious stuffed into the cavity of a chicken before roasting or added to boiling rice for added flavor. You can purchase them online HERE.

Another ingredient that I have added to this dish and that is commonly found in Middle Eastern cuisine is rosewater. I included it as an optional ingredient to be sprinkled over the finished dish just before eating, but I highly recommend it as it will add a whole exotic flavor dimension to the Machboos. The sweet accents of the rosewater gracefully complement the earthy spices and tangy limes. You can find rose water online HERE.

Once you have gathered up the ingredients necessary for this dish, it is quite easy and straightforward to make. A one pot dish, you’ll have little cleanup to do and most of the time involved in making the process is simply cooking time. The end result is worth whatever effort you went through to get the needed ingredients. And it’s a great dish for the whole family. While packed with flavor, it’s not spicy-hot. Even our toddler ate two pieces of the chicken and then requested rice.

Let’s make some Machboos!

Separate the whole spices and the powdered spices.

Dry roast the whole spices in a small pan over medium-high heat, tossing frequently to prevent scorching, until very fragrant, about 3-4 minutes.

Allow the spices to cool and then transfer them to a spice or coffee grinder along with the powdered spices and grind them to a fine powder.

Add the gheeor butter to the oil already in the Dutch oven and saute the onions over medium heat until caramelized and beginning to brown.

Slice the garlic cloves and mince the ginger and jalapeno pepper.

Add the garlic, ginger and jalapeno to the onions and saute for another two minutes.

Add the baharat and turmeric and stir to combine.

Return the chicken to the Dutch oven.

Get the dried limes.

It’s important to punch a few holes in the limes with a skewer, knife or the tines of fork before adding it to the dish, otherwise the juices won’t effectively penetrate the hardened skin. The holes will allow the cooking juices to infuse with the flavorful interior of the limes.

Add the chicken stock. Stir to combine, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for one hour.

After simmering for an hour, discard the cinnamon stick and dried limes. You can leave the cardamom pods in, but I prefer not to be surprised with a whole cardamom pod in my mouth.

I was only able to find 3 of the cardamom pods. I guess we’ll soon find out ends up with the other two!

Soak the basmati rice in water for at least 15 minutes.

Rinse and drain the rice. This process is said to create a fluffier rice texture for the finished dish, but it also lessens the cooking time of the rice and thus preserves its flavor which can diminish through longer cooking periods.

Add the cilantro and parsley to the Dutch oven.

Add the rice and stir to combine. Return the mixture to a boil, reduce to low, cover and cook for another 15-20 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked.

Transfer the rice and chicken to a serving platter and serve immediately. You can leave the chicken mixed in with the rice or place the chicken on top of the rice. For an added authentic Middle Eastern touch, sprinkle some rosewater over the finished dish just before serving.

Oh, and guess what? I ended up finding those other two missing cardamom pods before dishing it up :)

And there you have it – a lovely, authentic and delicious plate of Bahraini Chicken Machboos.

If you enjoyed this post, I hope you’ll join me for more upcoming recipes by subscribing to The Daring Gourmet.

Set the paprika and nutmeg powders aside. Place all remaining ingredients (whole seeds, cinnamon stick and cloves) in a small frying pan and dry roast over medium-high heat, tossing regularly to prevent scorching, for 3-4 minutes or until very fragrant. Transfer to a spice or coffee grinder and let cool. Add the paprika and nutmeg and grind all the ingredients to a fine powder. Store left over baharat in an airtight jar.

Instructions

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat and fry the chicken pieces on both sides until the skin is brown and crispy. Transfer the chicken to a plate and leave the remaining oil in the Dutch oven.

Add the ghee (or butter), reduce the heat to medium, and fry the onions until starting to brown, about 10-12 minutes.

Add the ginger, garlic, and green chile pepper and saute for another 2 minutes.

Add the baharat and turmeric and cook for another minute.

Return the chicken pieces to the Dutch oven along with the tomatoes, dried limes, cardamom pods, cinnamon, ground cloves and salt. Add the chicken stock and stir to combine. Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for one hour.

Add the cilantro, parsley and drained rice and stir to combine. Return it to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for another 15-20 minutes until the rice is done and has absorbed the liquid.

Transfer the chicken and rice to a serving dish (either leave the chicken pieces tossed in with the rice, or place the chicken on top of the rice), and sprinkling with 1-2 tablespoons of rosewater (optional).

I hope you do! It’s a wonderful blend of flavors. The spices for the baharat are pretty standard. You can find these spices in powder form virtually anywhere, finding the whole seeds can be a little more challenging. Many health food stores will have them in whole form. Some grocery chains, like Winco, also carry the whole seeds in their bulk section and you can just scoop out what you need. The only spice that will be more challenging to find is the cardamom. Again, I know some health food stores carry cardamom pods. Any Indian grocery store will as well. And of course you can get any of these spices online.

Abdulla, you don’t know how happy that makes me! I tried to be as thorough and authentic as possible and am thrilled to have received your vote of approval. Thank you! And thank you for you visiting – hope you come back!

Your recipe is really authentic and it looks delicious. on special occasions we add a mixture of onion, almond, cashew nuts and raisins on the top, we call it “Hashwa” and i like it way better with the this topping.

this how you do the Hashwa: in a sauce pan add onions without oil or water, and when it gets a little bit brown sprinkle some water on it and keep sprinkling the water until the onions gets brown but not burned, then add the raw nuts and raisins and a tea spoon of your baharat and you’ll also need the juice of one of those loomy you used in your recipe, just mix in everything until its almost dry, then add it on top of the rice.

Thanks and perfectly understandable :) Unless you do a lot of Middle Eastern cooking you would have virtually no other use for the dried limes and very, very little for the rosewater. But if you do like that cuisine, you’re going to love the additional dimensions of flavor that these ingredients bring to your dish!

I am from Bahrain too and I must agree with Abdulla; this is a very good recipe. However, I wouldn’t put jalapenos.. try the the tiny thin green chilies like the ones used in Indian cooking. It is also more authentic to use cinnamon bark rather than than sticks. I honestly have no clue if it makes a difference, it’s just that I’ve never seen a whole cinnamon stick in my grandmother or mother’s kitchens. My advice if ever struggling to find ingredients for Gulf dishes is to visit an Indian store. These are just some things I thought might be nice to know – I still think you have a great recipe here.

There are so many recipes for Machboos out there because each family has a different way of making it and it has been passed down for generations.

In my family, we used Hot Madras Curry Powder instead of bharat when sauteing the onions. and, we add in whole cloves, cracked cardamom pods black lime and cinnamon bark to the water before adding the rice. Another variation, which comes from granny, is that we boil the meat until it’s cooked through (it also serves as making stock) and then we rub it with salt and some of the spice before frying. The stock is then used to cook the rice. So, we serve the meat sperately.

My family’s take on Hashew or Hashwa:

Saute roughly chopped red onion in very little oil along with a little minced ginger and garlic. Once the garlic and ginger have dissolved, add some madras curry powder, turmeric and chilli powder.. As the onions become translucent and the spice have cooked through, add boiled yellow lentils (daal) and and mix until they take on the color of the spices – the lentils ahve to be whole (cooked through with a bite and not mashed. Then add cashew nuts and golden raisins (keshmesh). Add salt to taste.

Another accompaniment for this dish is Daqqous (a sort of warm Bahraini salsa). This is very easy and quick to make. It’s almost exactly like the chili sauce you use in your Koshari recipe except I add curry powder (my family has a bit of an addiction to it – but it makes it taste so much better) and omit the vinegar. Saute finely chopped onions with garlic and chopped green chilies as desired. Finally blitz whole tinned tomatoes (or blanched and skinned fresh tomatoes), and pour into the onions. Add salt to taste and bring to a boil.

As the food is very heavy and it is advisable to go light on the hashew. Having a green salad on the side or even just some greens is quite common. If you have that one person in your family who doesn’t think it’s spicy enough (like my brother) hand them a bottle of Tabasco or a handful of tiny green chilies.

Jinan, this is fantastic! Thank you so much for all the information, including variations of the dish. I love the idea of the Daqquos and will include that the next time I make Machboos! Again, thank you so much!

Hi Peter! That’s wonderful, thank you for including this in your roundup (which looks fabulous, by the way!). I know, I really miss the spice vendors over there – you walk in and find yourself surrounded by such a huge variety of spices and herbs (and in such massive quantities!) reaching from floor to ceiling. An unforgettable experience.

Every time I make Machboos, this is the site I visit. My mother in law makes machboos, this is as tasty as her recipe if not better. Makes my pregnant Wife happy whenever I make this. Thank you so much! The step by step instructions with the pictures are excellent, they really help.

Lerizi, I am truly honored – thank you so very much for the compliment. I’m so happy you and your wife enjoy this dish so much! Just don’t tell your mother-in-law that you can make this dish better than she can! :) Best to your pregnant wife and your new baby! -Kimberly

There are many, many (dozens) versions of biryani all specific to their own countries and regions and they vary according to the kind of meat and spices used as well as the cooking method. The most common biryani eaten in Pakistan is Sindhi biryani which features either chicken, mutton, fish or shrimp as well as potatoes and yogurt. Still, I would imagine most biryanis look very similar since they’re practically all meat and rice dishes.

This is really great. Currently in Bahrain and sad about how I wont get to eat anymore machboos when I leave tomorrow. Now i’m packing some loomy and baharat to make this when I’m back in the US. Thank you and thumbs up from another Bahraini!

Simple and delicious. I love to learn about new spice blends and this is certainly new to me. I work with spices often and I use a tea infuser for the cardamom and other pods and shards that can be nasty when you bite into them. That way, the flavor of the spices infuse into the stew, broth etc and you can take them out in one fell swoop ;)

Wonderful, I’m so glad you enjoyed it, thank you! Re: the water – Having to add an additional 1-2 cups of water is strange. Did you soak the rice for at least 15 minutes before adding it to the pot? And did you leave the pot tightly covered during cooking so no steam escaped?

I would love to make this but am having a lot of trouble getting dried lime, other than waiting for them to come in mail order would there be anything that I can subsitute them with, I can’t wait I must make this asap :)

I must say Kimberly. This is authentic and absolutely amazing. The instructions are super and loved the photos.

I am Bahraini and I would like to add that Machboos can come in two varieties. I don’t know if any of the comments up above mentioned this, but there is a Red Machboos, which is the one you did and its the most common. Need to say that my mom adds tomato sauce to bring up the red color in the rice. The second Machboos is the yellow one. It has different Beharat, commonly called “Bezar” and has no tomato in it, with an extra pinch of Cumin and some Yelyalan “Coriander”. Mom uses the yellow Machboos for mutton not for Chicken. Its usually hot and very spicy. I believe due to the absence of Tomatoes.

And one more thing, the name Machboos comes from “Kabsa” which means to flip. as the flipping of the rice when it cooks and bringing up the meat on top. It has nothing to do with kisses LOL, that guy must be joking. He made it as “Much” and “Boos” where Boos means to kiss in Arabic and much is, well, its much!!

Again, well done and I’ll be happy to bring up more authentic Bahrain recipes if you are interested. Just limme know.

OMG!! I’m sitting down right now to this kingly feast and let me tell you it satisfies the senses on all five levels: sweet, spicy, umami, crunchy…wait that’s not one of the five tongue tastes but who cares! I followed the instructions except that I sprinkled the chicken thighs and drumsticks with bharat spice mix before frying. I also added chickpeas and carrot matchstix along with the rice and cilantro. I followed the hashwa instructions as suggested by one reviewer, and i would never make this without it, this garnish is an absolute must! Finally I served it with a raita made with dried mint, fresh garlic and cilantro mixed into Greek yogurt. very pleased indeed with the results.Thank you for a Delicious and authentic recipe. Will be checking in with you again for more soon. Now back to my Machboos!!

Thank you for this recipe. I’m making it today in honor of the Formula-1 auto race that is in Bahrain this week. We cook a dish from each country the race is being held in, and have our friends over to watch it and feast! The next one is in Russia! Borscht?

This has made me happier than you can imagine. If you were unwed, I would proclaim my love to you from the rooftops. Will cook this next weekend and have a meltdown over how delicious it will taste. Thanks so much for writing the recipe really well, it’s thorough and easy to understand.

Any chance of doing some research on how to cook Kuwaiti machboos? I’m not sure how dissimilar it is, but I’m sure there’s enough differences to warrant another recipe.

Thank you :) Be sure to keep us posted on what you think once you’ve tried the dish. I’ll have to look into Kuwait’s version but from what I can tell the primary difference is the use of lamb instead of chicken.

Hi. Thanks for the wonderful recipe. I am cooking it now for the second time. Even though I am new to cooking your excellent instructions helped m create a great dish for my friends who were moving to Bahrain. I tried to rate this 5 stars but it didn’t work. Sorry.

How much oil do you fry the chicken in? Just a couple of tablespoons as indicated in the ingredients list?

Hi Kimberley, thank you for this recipe. I made it yesterday and we enjoyed it very much! Like Sandy wrote in her comment, we also made it because of the Formula1 in Bahrein. Here in Holland it’s hard to get loomi, so I used lime zest instead. Probably it’s not the best substitute, but I had to use something :-). I really love the fact that you write the recipe down step by step with pictures. This gave me conformation along the way that I was on the right track :-). I saw a lot of other delicious recipes on your website and I am looking forward to make some soon. Enjoy your day and keep up the good (and delicious) work!

Watched bizare foods in Dubai and this dish was featured. Had almost everything to make it so ran out and got the missing ingredients. It is amazing. One of the best things I have ever eaten and i made it which is even cooler. My incredibly picky 6 year old even gave it a thumbs up. Thank you for posting. Will be sharing this one.

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Unless otherwise stated, all images, content and recipes are original and are the sole property of Kimberly Killebrew, daringgourmet.com. No photographs or other content may be used without prior written consent.